John Crowther
John Crowther (1797-1861)
Born at Broseley on 7 May 1797
Managed seven blast furnaces in Staffordhsire (five at Stowheath, two at Osier Bed).
1844 Emigrated to the USA, and was employed to manage furnaces at Brady's Bend, Pa. He then adapted many furnaces in the Mahoning and Shenango valleys to use uncoked bituminous ('splint' or 'block') coal, and instructed his three sons in their management (Joshua (d.1883), Joseph J., and Benjamin).
1861 Died on 15 April at Longton, Staffs.
The above information 'History of the Manufacture of Iron in All Ages'[1]
Crowther was the first in America to smelt with raw bituminous coal, in 1846.[2]
'The first furnace in America built with the intention of using raw bituminous coal as fuel was built in 1845 for Messrs. Wilkinson, Wilkes & Co., at Lowell, Mahoning County, Ohio. This furnace was successfully blown in with raw coal on the 8th of August, 1846, by John Crowther, an Englishman, who came to the United States in 1844, previous to which he had been the manager of seven furnaces in Staffordshire. Mr. Crowther adapted many furnaces in Ohio to the use of bituminous coal, and instructed his three sons, Joshua, Joseph J., and Benjamin, in their management. He died April 15, 1861, in England. The successful blowing in of the furnace at Lowell may be fairly regarded as the commencement of the use of raw bituminous coal as a blast-furnace fuel in the United States.' [3]
See Also
Sources of Information
- ↑ [1]'History of the Manufacture of Iron in All Ages....' by James Moore Swank, American Iron & Steel Association, 1892
- ↑ 'The Economic History of the British Iron & Steel Industry 1784-1879' by Alan Birch, 1967
- ↑ [2] Popular Science Monthly, Volume 38, February 1891: The Development of American Industries Since Columbus: Iron and Steel Industry III by William F. Durfee